Brasileirão round 33 preview: Palmeiras at Santos, then Flamengo face Vasco at the Nilton Santos

Round 33 is a midweek round, and once again Palmeiras move first. A point behind Flamengo with six rounds left, they play at Santos on Wednesday evening, and a win would put them top until Flamengo visit Vasco da Gama on Thursday night, a Rio derby moved to the Nilton Santos. Thursday also brings the Belo Horizonte derby, Atlético-MG against third-placed Cruzeiro. At the bottom, Internacional, Grêmio and Corinthians are separated by two points, and Corinthians, in the bottom four, close the round at home to Mirassol on Friday.

Wednesday

RB Bragantino v Chapecoense (22:30 UTC, Cícero de Souza Marques). RB Bragantino, tenth on 41, lost 2–0 at Palmeiras and have not won in two. Chapecoense, bottom on 21 with a match in hand, beat Fluminense 2–1 for their first win since round 26, but have won one of 16 away. RB Bragantino won 2–1 at Chapecoense in May; Chapecoense won 2–1 here in September 2021.

Fluminense v Internacional (22:30 UTC, Maracanã). Fluminense, fifth on 51, have lost three in a row, the last 2–1 at Chapecoense, but have won eleven of 16 at home. Internacional, sixteenth on 35, beat Botafogo 3–0 to climb out of the bottom four, a point clear of it; they have won three of 16 away. Internacional won 2–0 at home in May; Fluminense won 1–0 here in October 2025 and knocked Internacional out of the Copa do Brasil in July and August 2025, winning 2–1 away and drawing 1–1 at home.

Santos v Palmeiras (22:30 UTC, Vila Belmiro). Santos, eighth on 46, drew 1–1 with Bahia with ten men after Neymar's red card, equalising on 90. Palmeiras, second on 69, beat RB Bragantino 2–0 for a fourth straight win and are unbeaten in nine. Gazeta Esportiva reports that Paulinho (thigh) and Ramón Sosa (calf) are out, that Joaquín Piquerez and Andreas Pereira are back from suspension, and that Vitor Roque, who has trained with the squad, may return. The sides drew 1–1 at Palmeiras in May, and Palmeiras knocked Santos out of the Copa do Brasil in August and September, 3–0 at home and 0–0 here; Santos won 1–0 here in November 2025.

Bahia v São Paulo (00:30 UTC Thursday, Arena Fonte Nova — Wednesday night in Brazil). Bahia, seventh on 50, have not won in two after the draw at Santos; Luciano Juba has eleven goals. São Paulo, ninth on 43, drew 1–1 at Mirassol and have won two of 16 away. The sides drew 2–2 at São Paulo in May; São Paulo won 2–0 at home in October 2025, and Bahia 2–1 here in May 2025.

Remo v Botafogo (00:30 UTC Thursday, Evandro Almeida — Wednesday night in Brazil). Remo, nineteenth on 26, lost 1–0 at Cruzeiro and have gone twelve league matches without a win. Botafogo, eleventh on 39, lost 3–0 at Internacional and have won four of 16 away. Remo won May's meeting 2–1 at Botafogo; Botafogo won both Série B meetings in 2021.

Thursday

Atlético-MG v Cruzeiro (22:30 UTC, Arena MRV). Atlético-MG, sixth on 50, lost 3–2 at Flamengo to a penalty on 90+9, but have lost one of 16 at home. O Tempo reports that centre-back Vitor Hugo is suspended after a third yellow card, shown in stoppage time of the defeat at Flamengo. Cruzeiro, third on 54, beat Remo 1–0 for a second straight win; Kaio Jorge has eleven goals. Atlético-MG won May's league meeting 3–1 away and knocked Cruzeiro out of the Copa do Brasil in August and September, 1–1 away and 2–1 at home.

Coritiba v Vitória (22:30 UTC, Couto Pereira). Coritiba, twelfth on 39, lost 1–0 at home to Grêmio and have not won in seven. Vitória, fourteenth on 38, drew 1–1 with Atlético Paranaense; they have won ten of 16 at home and none of 16 away. Vitória won May's meeting 4–1 at home.

Vasco da Gama v Flamengo (23:00 UTC, Estádio Nilton Santos). Vasco, thirteenth on 38 with a match in hand, came from behind to beat Corinthians 3–2 with two late goals from Marino Hinestroza. Lance reports that the police did not approve São Januário, so Vasco chose Botafogo's ground, and that after a meeting with the state federation on Monday the tickets will be split evenly between the two sets of fans. Flamengo, top on 70, beat Atlético-MG 3–2 and are unbeaten in nine; Itatiaia reports that Jorge Carrascal, who scored the winning penalty, is suspended after a third yellow card. Pedro has 16 goals. Vasco have not beaten Flamengo in the last five meetings: 2–2 at Flamengo in May, a 1–0 Flamengo win in the Campeonato Carioca in January, and draws of 1–1 and 0–0 in 2025.

Grêmio v Atlético Paranaense (00:30 UTC Friday, Arena do Grêmio — Thursday night in Brazil). Grêmio, seventeenth on 34, won 1–0 at Coritiba with Martin Braithwaite's goal on 90+2, their first away league win of the season; they have won seven of 16 at home. Atlético Paranaense, fourth on 54, drew 1–1 at Vitória and have not won in two; Kevin Viveros leads the scorers with 21. May's meeting ended 0–0; Grêmio won 2–0 at home and 2–0 away in 2024.

Friday

Corinthians v Mirassol (23:00 UTC, Neo Química Arena). Corinthians, eighteenth on 33, lost 3–2 at Vasco and have gone ten league matches without a win; they have won five of 16 at home. Gazeta Esportiva reports that Jesse Lingard is suspended after a third yellow card, that Gabriel Paulista, Raniele, Alex Santana, Zakaria Labyad and Kayke are out injured, and that Memphis Depay may play if he recovers from a thigh problem. Mirassol, fifteenth on 37, drew 1–1 with São Paulo. Mirassol won 2–1 at home in May, as they did in May 2025; Corinthians won 3–0 here in October 2025.

The table before the round

#	Team	P	GD	Pts
1	Flamengo	32	+37	70
2	Palmeiras	32	+34	69
3	Cruzeiro	32	+5	54
4	Atlético Paranaense	32	+12	54
5	Fluminense	32	+9	51
6	Atlético-MG	32	+6	50
7	Bahia	32	+5	50
…
13	Vasco da Gama	31	−6	38
14	Vitória	32	−11	38
15	Mirassol	32	−8	37
16	Internacional	32	−4	35
17	Grêmio	32	−9	34
18	Corinthians	32	−8	33
19	Remo	32	−16	26
20	Chapecoense	31	−31	21

Flamengo lead Palmeiras by a point, and Cruzeiro and Atlético Paranaense are fifteen behind Palmeiras. At the bottom, five points cover Vasco da Gama in thirteenth and Corinthians in eighteenth, and Vasco da Gama and Chapecoense still have their postponed round 21 match to play.

Numbers to know

• Kevin Viveros of Atlético Paranaense leads the scorers with 21; Pedro of Flamengo has 16 and Gabriel Barbosa of Santos 15.
• Remo have gone twelve league matches without a win, Corinthians ten and Coritiba seven.
• Flamengo and Palmeiras are both unbeaten in nine league matches.
• Vitória have won ten of 16 at home and none of 16 away.
• Palmeiras have conceded 22, the fewest; Chapecoense 63, the most.

The full round with kick-off times in your time zone is on the Brasileirão page.

Sources for the context: Lance, Lance, Gazeta Esportiva, Gazeta Esportiva, O Tempo, Itatiaia.